Clearing permit for Burns Beach-Mindarie coastal path out for public comment

A map showing the route the coastal path will take between Burns Beach and Mindarie.

CLEARING plans for a coastal path connecting Burns Beach and Mindarie are out for public comment.

The dual-use path, expected to be built by the end of 2019, is a project jointly funded by the WA Planning Commission and cities of Joondalup and Wanneroo.

The Department of Water and Environmental Regulation has advertised the clearing permit application, submitted by the City of Joondalup, which will deliver the project.

Joondalup Mayor Albert Jacob said the project was going through a final review of the path design.

“It is imperative the alignment and design of the path minimises any impact on the biodiversity values found within the project area,” he said.

“Construction is anticipated to commence mid-2019 and is scheduled to take about six months to complete,” he said.

“It is exciting to see the project take shape after many years of advocating for this link from residents of both the cities of Joondalup and Wanneroo.”

Mr Jacob said the path would give walkers, joggers and cyclists “access to a stretch of natural beauty unlike anywhere else in Perth” and increase visitor numbers to the area.

The State Government is contributing $2 million to the project, with the rest of the costs to be split between the two cities.

At Wanneroo Council’s October meeting, assets director Harminder Singh said he represented that City on a project control group.

Mr Singh said the clearing permit process was likely to take three to six months before approval could be considered.

He said there had been consultation with two stakeholders: Peet, which was developing land to the south; and Tamala Park Regional Council, developing in the north.

Those developers will be responsible for sections of the path within Burns Beach and Catalina estates respectively.

“The dual-use path has to link with both developers’ land to provide full connectivity from Burns Beach to Mindarie,” Mr Singh said.

“A community information plan is currently being developed and the community will be advised of the details of this project around February.

“The City of Joondalup expects to call tenders on behalf of both cities around February with the aim to award in April and start construction soon after, which is subject to getting the clearing permit.

“It is expected that the path will be fully constructed by December 2019.”

The clearing permit application said the original alignment was 2.82km and only used 490m of existing cleared tracks, so it would have required clearing more than 5ha.

However, it said the new 2.35km alignment used 1.87km of existing cleared tracks and firebreaks.

“Due to the constraints of the terrain, some clearing outside of disturbed area is unavoidable,” it said.